SANTA MONICA, Calif. and VANCOUVER, British Columbia, (Lionsgate) - There was a "Crash moment" at the 78th Annual Academy Award nominations this morning as Lionsgate's (NYSE: LGF; Toronto) challenging and thought-provoking contemporary drama CRASH scored a total of six Academy Award nominations, including Oscar nods for Best Picture, Best
Director (Paul Haggis), Best Screenplay (Paul Haggis &
Bobby Moresco) and Best Performance By An Actor In A Supporting Role (Matt Dillon). CRASH also earned Academy Award nominations for Best Film Editing (Hughes Winborne) and Best Original Song ("In The Deep," music by Kathleen "Bird" York and Michael Becker, lyric by York). The Company garnered a total of seven Oscar nods as Lionsgate's DON'T TELL was nominated as the Italian entry for Best Foreign Language Film. Lionsgate has now earned 25 Oscar nominations in the past seven years, more than any other independent studio.
The nominations capped off the first phase of an awards season of building momentum for CRASH, in which the film earned a Screens Actors Guild award for Best Ensemble Cast In A Motion Picture on Sunday after garnering a Producers Guild nomination for Best Picture, a Directors Guild nomination for filmmaker Paul Haggis, a Writers Guild nomination for Best Original Screenplay (Paul Haggis and Bobby Moresco), nine BAFTA nominations (including Best Film and Best Director) and six NAACP Image Award nominations (including Best Film). CRASH was also named the best film of the year by Roger Ebert among many other critics.
Lionsgate launched an unprecedented marketing initiative by sending out 130,000 DVD screeners to opinion leaders throughout the creative community for the hit film, which has already generated $54 million at the North American box office and sold 3.8 million units on DVD. A Lionsgate CRASH television series reprising the roles of the major cast members is currently in development for FX Network.
"CRASH is that rare film that is as thought-provoking as it is entertaining," said Lionsgate Chief Executive Officer Jon Feltheimer. "It defines the Lionsgate brand at its most daring and provocative and has already become part of our national consciousness. We are extremely proud of the film and all of the superb talent associated with it and, although we hope that today's Oscar nominations are the forerunner of more critical accolades to come, CRASH is already a winner on every level."
"CRASH is a story I have wanted to tell for 10 years, and we are thrilled that the members of the Motion Picture Academy have recognized its value," said director/cowriter/coproducer Paul Haggis. "Beginning with a bold decision at the Toronto Film Festival and culminating in a wonderful marketing campaign, the acquisition, marketing, publicity and distribution teams of Lionsgate have been the perfect partners in bringing this story to a North American audience. We are privileged to have worked with one of the most gifted ensemble casts of actors ever to appear in a motion picture, and coproducer Cathy Schulman and I are honored to carry the torch for the entire producing team, including Bobby Moresco, Don Cheadle, Bob Yari and Mark Harris."
Challenging and thought-provoking, CRASH takes a provocative, unflinching look at the complexities of racial tolerance in contemporary America. The film features an all-star cast of Sandra Bullock, Don Cheadle, Matt Dillon, Brendan Fraser, Terrence Howard, Chris "Ludacris" Bridges, Thandie Newton and Ryan Philippe. It is directed by Paul Haggis, cowritten by Haggis and Bobby Moresco and produced by Haggis, Cathy Schulman, Bobby Moresco, Don Cheadle, Bob Yari and Mark R. Harris.
Lionsgate is the premier independent producer and distributor of motion pictures, television programming, home entertainment, family entertainment and video-on-demand content. Its prestigious and prolific library is a valuable source of stable, recurring revenue and is a foundation for the growth of the Company's core businesses. The Lionsgate brand name is synonymous with original, daring, quality entertainment in markets around the globe.
